New poll shows widespread support for student loan cancellation

A new poll from Data for Progress showed that student loan cancellation was widely popular in a recent survey.

Sixty percent of respondents believed the federal government should forgive all or some student loan debt. Of demographic groups asked their opinion, Republicans had the lowest levels of support at forty-five percent. GOP voters had a lower approval rate than those who had never taken on student loans, of which fifty-four percent said they supported at least some cancellation.

Of those surveyed, twenty-nine percent had less than $10,000 in debt, highlighting the incredible impact President Biden’s decision will have on millions of borrowers. The most recent analysis from the White House shows that twenty million people may have their student loan debt eliminated under the cancellation plan.

From the polling, the GOP criticism that such a move is reverse-Robinhood wealth transfer seems unfounded. Such a line of criticism is hugely individualistic and entails a limited understanding of the virtuous economic impacts this policy and others could have on society. Millions of people who will be able to live debt free may feel more confident taking on loans to buy a new house or start a business. To say that a voter would be angry that a group of citizens receives a benefit also lacks any sense that solidarity could exist between the people.

The decision by the administration to extend the loan payment moratorium also polled well with voters. Although this policy was favored by sixty-two percent of independents and fifty-eight percent of people who had never borrowed, only forty-four percent of GOP respondents supported it.

PPP loan forgiveness also shows the benefits of government relief

In March and April 2020, as the covid-19 pandemic threatened US businesses’ bottom line, the government established the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP). The PPP offered loans to businesses to cover wages and salaries to avoid the need for the company to lay off or furlough workers during the first wave of the pandemic.

Student loan cancellation is typically argued against on the basis of personal responsibility. If someone takes out loan(s) they should have the mental forethought to plan for paying it back. However, when the economy began to show signs of trouble, the government offered a financial lifeline to businesses to avoid a massive crisis. One could argue that firms should have the finances necessary to weather such an event and if not then they should take on as much debt as they know they will be able to pay back. Another could further this argument by saying that if a business fails others in the society have no responsibility to save the company. But, this is not the approach that has been taken by the Republicans in regard to the PPP loans.

This PPP relief helped the economy recover more quickly, preventing some workers from detaching from the labor market completely. But, taking out these loans, by the same logic as that which is applied to student loans, would mean that the government shouldn’t have forgiven more than $750 billion in PPP loans.

Businesses, small and large, should have had to pay back the millions some of them racked up. Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene tweeted her rejection of the president’s plan, saying it was “unfair” for working-class people to have their taxes used to pay off the “student debt crisis.” The White House retweeted these comments, noting that she has “had $183,504 in PPP loans forgiven.”